Chapter 8: Organizing Ideas

transitional devices

transitions, internal previews, internal summaries, and signposts that provide links to claims throughout the speech, provide a sense of organization, and ultimately make it easier for the audience to follow and remember the ideas presented.

transitions

words or phrases that demonstrate key relationships among ideas and indicate a speaker is leaving one point and moving on to another

signposts

words that signal the next point to be made

internal summary

brief review of what has just been discussed before moving on to the next point

internal preview

brief statement of what the speaker will discuss next

topical order pattern

organizational strategy that arranges each main point by subtopic of a larger topic

spatial pattern

organizational strategy that arranges ideas according to place or position

chronological pattern

organizational strategy that arranges ideas by a time sequence

causal pattern

organizational strategy that highlights the cause-effect relationships that exist among the main points

oral organizational strategies

plan that will allow you to devise an effective structure for your speech and your audience to better follow and comprehend your message